Portland's tech scene grew modestly more diverse last year, according to a city-funded study out Thursday, but there are signs the industry is looking beyond its historically narrow pool of job candidates to fill open positions.
Oregon's tech sector, like the industry nationwide, is overwhelmingly white and male. That effectively excludes a growing share of an increasingly diverse population from some of the most lucrative jobs available.
The city of Portland and nearly two dozen of its largest tech companies conceived a "diversity pledge" two years ago in an effort to broaden the industry's workforce.
Thursday's study found tech workers of all demographic groups say their companies provide a welcoming work environment, but it found that white men were more likely to say that than other groups.
"We're moving in the right direction but we still have a lot of work to do," said Jared Wiener, the software industry liaison for Portland's economic development agency. He said it's important that the city's tech sector be inclusive, and that a broader pool of workers can help address the industry's chronic shortage of skilled workers.
Thursday's study is the second annual survey of the 22 Portland tech firms that made the pledge to diversify their workforce. Findings include:
- Gender
- Race
- Age
Portland paid $10,000 for the survey, conducted by DHM Research, and has budgeted as much as $3,000 more to provide each company with data on their own performance.
Participating companies include many of Portland's most prominent tech firms, among them Puppet, AWS Elemental, Jama Software, Cloudability and Simple.
Tech companies and industry observers have offered a number of explanations for the lack of diversity: Until recently, the vast majority of engineering students were white males, and institutional biases have prompted companies to hire people who resemble people they've hired before.
Additionally, some female tech workers and others from underrepresented groups say they have found the industry unwelcoming, either because of cultural insensitivity or because of outright harassment.
There have been signs of change within Portland's industry in the past year. Both AWS Elemental and Puppet, two of the city's largest tech companies, have hired diversity managers, and another major employer, online banker Simple, is hiring for the same position.
And last spring, the Technology Association of Oregon named Ruby Receptionists chief executive Jill Nelson its first female tech executive of the year. Monica Enand, chief executive of Portland legal technology firm Zapproved, served as master of ceremonies.
"Our participation in the Diversity Pledge has had a profound impact on Zapproved's culture and hiring practices. It has helped us grow a more diverse and dynamic culture," said Enand, who also founded the legal technology firm, in a written statement. "Our awareness and regular discussions about inclusion of people of color and underrepresented genders is good not only for our company but also for our community as a whole."
Correction: This article has been corrected to indicate Jill Nelson was Oregon's tech executive of the year.
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-- Mike Rogoway; twitter: @rogoway; 503-294-7699